His Thrall
by Herascat
Summary: A slayer and watcher have a greater responsibility to the world. One that started with a book and ended with ashes. B/G Warning: Character death.


Disclaimer: I don't Own Buffy or Giles I just don't see a whole lot of Giles getting vamped so I contributed my piece. Slightly depressing so be warned.

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Buffy couldn't help sobbing as she sat in front of the newly placed headstone tracing the letters of her watcher's name. The only thing that made his death worse was that now she was going to have to kill him again. The ground beneath her shifted slightly.

She jumped up and away as a hand emerged from the ground, sporting the pinky ring she knew so well. His other hand emerged and grasped for a hold. She remembered that feeling of digging herself out of her own grave and couldn't let him be alone. She was only helping to speed up his death, but her hands reached out to pull him out of the dirt. Slowly the rest of Giles' body emerged; still dressed in the suit they had chosen for him before the funeral. She tried to pull her hands out of his when he stepped toward her. He wouldn't let go of her.

"Buffy?" His head tilted with that inquisitive look he would peg her with occasionally.

He looked so normal and for a moment Buffy forgot what he'd become. "It's me." The tears were still streaming down her face and he gently brushed them away with dirty fingers, leaving little tracts of mud on her face. "Do you know what you are?" Her fingers moved for the stake in her sleeve.

"I do and I know what you came here to do." His hand caught hers before the stake could reach his chest. His eyes glowed green instead of yellow when his face transformed, and Buffy noted that the ridges on his forehead were less pronounced than most vampires as well. He was saying something in a language she didn't understand when the stake disappeared from her hand.

The fear that rose was reflexive, she didn't have a weapon and it seemed that he was stronger than her with magic to boot. She shook the hair out of her face looked up at him stubbornly. If he leaned in for the kill she could always kick him where it would _really_ hurt. His human face was looking down at her again when she finally met his amused eyes.

"Did you really expect that to work, my dear? I did train you after all, and just because I was gone for a few months doesn't mean I've neglected that practice."

Narrowing her eyes in anger Buffy decided to go for the nuts. Once again he was too quick for her. She was spun around with her back flush to his chest as soon as he blocked her knee.

Giles hissed and his face transformed as her arse collided with his erection. Pulling her away from his body wasn't an option as she writhed trying to loosen his grip so instead he crossed both their arms over her chest and pulled her flush against him.

Fighting him was getting Buffy nowhere, so she stilled trying to make him believe that she had given up. His grip didn't loosen in the least. She finally noticed the hardness positioned right in the cleft of her buttocks and her head snapped around to look at him. The only thing she could see was Giles' clenched jaw and a closed eyelid. His obvious arousal was fueling her own desire and she felt herself start to grow wet.

There was something about this woman and vampires that drove his jealousy over the edge. He growled and pulled her hair to the side to nuzzle her neck. "Do you want me to bite you now?" He felt her still. "No? Then why do you want me now? You never wanted me when I was a man, but as a vampire I can smell your desire." He nipped at her neck, not breaking the skin but still drawing a surprised gasp from her lips.

Buffy couldn't answer. Her mouth opened but nothing came out. It was as if he had frozen her vocal chords. His words whispered past her ear. "I'm not sure I want to hear an answer from you." She started to struggle again.

"Fuck you!" She was finally able to speak again. "Just because you didn't smell it before doesn't mean it wasn't there!" And the solidity of Giles' chest was gone. He had disappeared into thin air. She looked around the cemetery, searching for some sign of him but there was nothing.

She walked back through the streets of Bath to his flat aching with loss and unfulfilled desire

Willow and Xander could take care of Dawn for a night, they had offered after the funeral and even though Buffy hadn't answered they knew her well enough to take Dawn with them as the crowd had dispersed. Buffy unlocked the door and was assaulted by the smell of Giles as she opened it.

It made her start to tear up again, but she pressed forward into his sanctum and closed the door behind her. The strength left her suddenly and she sagged against the door. Now she would have to go out every night searching for Giles for the sole purpose of killing him. She stripped out of her clothes, piling them just inside the door of his bedroom. Padding over the wood floors in nothing but her underwear, she reached for the shirt he had taken off before he had gone out to patrol the night he died. It still smelled like him.

She pulled the shirt over her arms and buttoned a few of the buttons before crawling into his bed. The pillow under her head still held his scent as well and she buried her nose into it. Falling asleep was easy with his presence surrounding her.

As a vampire Giles' senses were much improved and he found himself missing the glasses he had worn almost his whole life. Buffy's words had shocked him to his very core and he had magicked himself away from her immediately. Just because she had admitted to wanting him didn't mean that she would give up the hunt though, he would have to see her again. The demon that inhabited him now craved the chase that a slayer would bring, but Giles was _not_ looking forward to another confrontation.

Bath was beautiful at night or so he realized moving silently through the shadows. Most people were already tucked away at this time of night, but he wasn't willing to risk anything. He could smell her at his door. If she had taken over his flat would he still be able to enter without permission? He tried the door; it was locked but a simple spell made it open for him. With one step he crossed the threshold and entered familiar territory. Nothing looked different in the living room or kitchen. He moved into the bedroom and stopped short.

The covers Buffy had pulled up earlier had been kicked to the bottom of the bed. He could see an enormous amount of skin from toe to hip. His shirt had tangled around her torso, leaving her lower back exposed. Even without a view of her face or breasts he felt himself harden at the sight of her.

He sat in the chair in the corner of the room and watched her sleep until he felt the impending dawn pressing closer. He shifted himself to a crypt in a cemetery he had patrolled regularly after he had left Sunnydale.

Buffy woke with the rising sun, her face gritty from crying and dirt. She went to the bathroom and washed her face. Dawn couldn't stay with Willow and Xander again; she couldn't ask it of them. Pulling clothes on became her next task and soon she was locking up the door behind her wondering when she would be able to come back.

On her way back to the rooms that she shared with the others her phone rang. It was Xander. "Hey Xand, what's up?"

"Hey Buffy, I was just calling to find out how last night went." From the silence on the other line he could guess. "You weren't able to stake him were you?"

She felt the immediate need to be defensive. "It wasn't like I didn't try, Xander. He can still use magic and just poofed my stake. I don't know how I'm going to do it."

Xander was quiet for a moment. "I think Willow and I should take Dawn back to London, we should keep her as far as possible until the problem is solved. She's just in danger until Giles is dead."

She couldn't help but smile, despite the fact that she wouldn't be able to see Dawn. "I agree, I'll come by and pick up my stuff from the hotel and then stay at Giles'." Buffy hung up the phone feeling satisfied for a moment, then just sad.

Now she would be here completely alone trying to do something that she really didn't want to, despite the danger. She wandered the streets for a while, until her feet felt leaden and she needed to return to the hotel to get her things. Dawn, Xander and Willow had cleared out by the time Buffy got to the room, so she packed quickly.

The small bag was heavy enough to weigh her down on the trip back to Giles' flat and was promptly dropped as she walked through the door. Tears once again threatened to overwhelm her as the Gileness of his flat greeted her. There was a tea set in the kitchen waiting to be filled and books scattered over the coffee table and desk. A sword sat in the corner along with a stash of stakes and holy water, his leather jacket was thrown over the couch.

She pulled the worn material over her arms and burrowed her nose into the smell of cow hide, scotch and Giles. Buffy wasn't sure how long she sat there staring into space surrounded by the scent of her watcher but soon the sun was setting and Buffy would need to go on the hunt again. She rolled up the sleeves of his jacket and zipped it up tucking several stakes into the cuffs and pockets.

The sun was just crossing the horizon as Buffy came upon Giles' grave and the gaping hole that he had come out of. She fingered the dirt that he had dug though last night. The same dirt had been on her cheeks when she woke up this morning. He didn't realize that she had been attracted to him for a long time. The way he had held her after she had come back from the dead had only reinforced the fact that she was in love with him. She wrapped her arms around herself.

He had the same love in his eyes that night, but she'd been too confused to even begin to explain, then she had been too hurt to ever tell him. Last night had been an eye opener to say the least, his tumescence had awakened the desire that she'd repressed for so long and he had called her out on it. She punched the ground.

"Really Buffy, you can't be _that_ angry at me."

She whirled to face Giles a stake at the ready. "Why aren't you setting of my spidey-sense?" He only stared at her and she slowly lowered her arm. It was strange though, because she didn't really want to.

"Come here Buffy." He held a hand out to her and she found herself walking toward him. It reminded her of Dracula.

"You're not him," She was still yards away, but at his inquisitive look she elaborated, even as she kept taking small steps. "You're not Dracula, only he can use the thrall."

"Oh dearheart, you've got it all wrong. It's all about the magic in your blood and when I was alive I was one of the strongest sorcerers you could have met. I believe even you once called me a god." She was standing right in front of him now and he circled her.

Buffy started panting; the sexual tension was excruciating especially when he ran his nose up the column of her neck. She shivered under his caress. "Giles," Her voice was breathy, too sensual so she cleared her throat. "Giles I don't want to kill you. We could give you a soul…Willow knows the spell I could call her right now and…" Her voice was gone again.

Giles smiled at the glare that Buffy directed at him. "I have no desire to be anything like those nancy boy vampires that fell for you." Her gaze dropped and he could smell the tears falling down her face. "Now, now, none of that." He lifted her chin and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Why are you crying, dearheart?"

She couldn't believe her ears. "Let me go, Giles. You know that I can't let you live now that you've turned."

"You let Spike live!" Her free will was returned and she was backing away from him. He realized his mistake in that moment and crooked his finger to force her back to him.

"You're not getting away that easily, now answer the question."

Instead of concentrating on his words Buffy focused on getting free of his spell. Her fist connected with his jaw before he realized she had willed her arm free. "Think about what you said…you're a walking contradiction. Your body says you want me but you say you don't want to fall for me."

His fingers ran over her head and through her hair. "That's not what I said at all. Firstly, I've already fallen head over heels in love with you. I just don't want to be like your other lovers: an obsession, a flame that burns hot then diminishes to nothing. Even with this demon inside of me I want this to last." His hand clasped the hair at the nape of her neck and held her still as he kissed her.

When Giles' lips collided with hers, Buffy moaned and gripped his collar to pull him closer to her. She felt his face change, the teeth lengthening and nicking her lip. He sucked to lip into his mouth and feasted on the small amount of blood. Buffy moaned again.

Pulling away from her, Giles licked his lips and tried to get his breathing under control. "I can't…" He unwrapped himself from her limbs.

Buffy glared up at him, still panting from exertion. "I thought you were done playing yo-yo with me." Reaching up she grabbed the back of his neck and pulled his lips back down to hers. She plunged her tongue into his mouth and felt him acquiesce. She had come here to kill him, but this was so much better.

There were vampires on the fringe of his perception and Giles knew that they would have to move their activities to a safer location. He pulled back to recite a few Latin words.

Buffy looked around, stunned. One moment they had been in the graveyard and the next they were in Giles' bedroom, he had pressed her close to him. She could feel every plane and ridge of his body through the leather and cloth; he was hugging her so close.

He moved his lips down her neck quickly, passing over the ever tempting pulse point and moving to the skin not covered by his jacket. It soon became too much and he ripped the zipper down to expose more creamy flesh to his questing mouth. The straps of her tank-top were his next mission and they snapped under his new strength.

The twin snaps didn't bother Buffy in the least, because now his attentions had moved further down her torso and she felt her knees give way. If Giles hadn't held her up she would have collapsed on the floor instead she felt the bedsheets at her backside and let him sit her down. She whimpered.

The puckered nipples were too hard to resist. Giles knelt in front of his slayer clasping her torso as close as possible to his lips. She was making the most wanton sounds so he started a downward descent to oblige her 'more's. Soon the slacks and knickers were out of his way and he trailed chilled fingers up her legs to her hips. He moved both of them more comfortably on the bed.

Even with closed eyes, Buffy could feel his kneeling form between her legs and his eyes roving her nude form. She shivered in delight and moaned when his hands started moving over her. They were everywhere but where she wanted them most. "Please Giles…now."

His fingers rubbed over the sensitive bundle of nerves at her entrance and pressed his face against her thigh to watch her reaction. Her head was thrown back and she moaned as he plunged two fingers inside of her heat. He lowered his head to lap at the juices flowing down her legs and thrust his tongue into her along with his fingers. The sound of blood pounded through his head.

Her femoral arteries were too close to him, he could feel his canines elongating. Groaning he pulled away from her. "I can't."

She sat up suddenly and tried to grab him. "Why not? You started this and now you're not going to finish it?"

"Dearheart, I haven't fed yet." The shame in his admission was palpable and he turned his eyes away from her.

"Since you came back? How are you still moving?"

Giles smiled. "The magic is the only thing keeping me up right now, but I won't be able to control the hunger being near you. And I refuse to take human blood, so I think we're at an impasse." He crawled off of the bed and started walking away from her, he wouldn't disappear this time.

"Wait!" He stopped and turned back toward her. "I let Angel feed from me once, I could let you…"

"Do you really want me to?" He knew the answer and turned his back to her again. "I need to get to the blood bank or something-now."

"I want you to." She whispered. "I want to be connected to you."

"You won't be able to take this back." He was too weak to resist her. He fell to her knees in front of the bed and pulled her into his arms.

Buffy bared her neck to him with a near grimace on her face. He pushed her back down on the bed. It made her jump when instead of moving up her body he stayed where he had been previously.

"You don't need another scar on your neck." He dipped his tongue into her core before turning to the side and letting his fangs penetrate the thin skin of her inner thigh. The combined taste of her blood and arousal was overwhelming; he nearly fainted from the pleasure of it.

Buffy didn't flinch when his teeth punctured the vein, only pulled his head closer to her. Pleasure ripped through her even as she grew lightheaded from blood loss, she whimpered. Nothing had brought her closer to the brink more quickly than her blood flowing into him. His mouth moved away and his tongue soothed the punctures until the blood stopped dripping down her thigh.

Strength flowed through Giles' body as he gripped her hips even tighter and plunged his tongue into her core. Her muscles clamped down and he drank the essence of Buffy that poured forth onto his tongue.

Heat left her as Giles pulled away, and for the first time this night Buffy refused to try to make him stay. Through half-lidded eyes she watched him back up to the middle of the room and undress for her. Until now she hadn't even realized that he was still fully clothed. Inches upon inches of flesh were bared to her gaze and she pulled herself up on her elbows to get a better view.

Giles didn't pause or slow as Buffy's eyes wandered over his body; his only concern was undressing a quickly as possible and getting back to her. He finally started back toward her, crawling over the bed and between her legs to press his lips against hers once more. Their tongues dueled as he slid himself home.

"Giles! Oh god, more, please!" Buffy's nails dug into Giles' shoulders as she met his steady thrusts. He obliged her pleas, picking up speed and reaching between them to rub his thumb over her nubbin. Buffy gripped the headboard above her and arched her back as she came with wild abandon.

The velvet grip of her muscles threw Giles over the edge and he followed her into bliss.

They came to awareness slowly, Buffy's eyes fluttered open to find Giles looking down at her. He had shifted them so that she was half laying on top of him, so she snuggled in closer. "What are we going to do?" She asked the question quietly, almost a whisper.

"You know what needs to be done, love." He offered her a sad smile and she looked away from him.

She mulled over the situation for a while letting the feel of his hand stroking her back sooth her. "You know I haven't really been alive since Willow brought me back." She spoke with caution, knowing that he would guess her goal almost instantly.

He knew it was true, she had been trying for everybody but herself, the desire was just lacking. "I shouldn't have left. I don't know why she ever thought you would have been in hell." His words surprised her into looking at him again. "But if I take you they'll never let us get away. Willow won't ever stop looking for us."

"She never has to know, my blood is already here and if they try to track you they won't be able to find you. They'll never know the truth. We can make it work, I know we can."

He looked thoughtful for a moment and Buffy smiled at the cute Gilesy look. "You're right I can get rid of any trace." She watched his naked butt as he walked around the room gathering supplies for whatever magick he'd decided to do.

"Do you have any idea how cute you look? All intense and scholarly." He smiled and turned away from her.

"I need some of your blood" Buffy slid from the bed and walked toward him offering him her arm. A little sigh escaped her as Giles' teeth pierced her wrist. He licked at the wound for a moment before drawing a finger through the pooling blood and mixing the herbs already in a wooden bowl with it. Giles started muttering something in Latin, a glowing green light emerged from his body and enveloped Buffy. For a moment she felt lightheaded, then the feeling receded leaving behind a certain weightlessness. Giles took her hand and cleaned the last of the blood from her arm with a quick swipe of her tongue. "Do you really want this?"

"More than anything. The only person who penetrates the fog around my life is you. I know what has to be done. For the first time in a very long time she was completely content with a decision. Dawn was still a few hours away so Buffy got dressed as Giles performed the same magick on himself, then he dressed as well. They held hands and whispered quietly to each other on the way to the cemetery. Buffy knew the path for Giles' grave by heart now and her feet led them to the disturbed earth.

Buffy and Giles worked on hands and knees to widen the hole. When the earth was cleared away Buffy climbed into the damp earth and Giles crawled down beside her. He leaned in as if to hug her and she opened her arms to him. With a sudden ferocity his teeth ripped into her neck, drawing great gulps of her blood, she struggled for a moment instinctively then went still. As he felt her heart rate slow down he pulled his lips from her throat and bit into his own wrist.

He offered her the savaged wrist and she clutched at it weakly, sipping the life giving elixir. His mouth moved back to her throat, taking pride in the erasure of Angel's marks. He finally pulled away from her as her heart stopped, laying her gently in the earth. He piled the dirt on top of her body as he felt dawn approaching so as the last handful of dirt was placed he move to the mausoleum he'd been staying in.

Giles waited impatiently for the sun to set, pacing the small room like a caged tiger. The light finally faded and he flashed himself to the grave. He had piled the dirt neatly the night before on Buffy's still cooling body, it was easier for him to sit still now that he was with her again. He waited there with his hand placed on the damp earth over Buffy's heart for the hours it took her to rise again.

When he earth finally shifted under his hand he nearly jumped back in surprise, so lost in thought he'd been. The grave hadn't been deep, so it was just a moment before her hand reached through the ground to grasp his. He pulled her out of the ground remembering that the last time she'd had to do this she'd been alone.

She stood looking at him with yellow eyes, the ridges on her forehead slightly pronounced and dirt covering her skin and hair. He wiped some of the dirt away. "Would you like a shower love?"

Buffy giggles, her face returning to the face he'd come to love. "Sure, let's get cleaned off." The hunger pains were there but they weren't anything she couldn't handle.

Giles transported them back to his flat and they took a leisurely shower together. They soaped each other gently, letting the tension ebb and flow. When they were clean and dry Giles led Buffy to the bed, he watched her lay across the dark expanse and sighed. The vision spread before him was everything he'd ever wanted.

He climbed over her body and let himself sink into her. "Feed" and Buffy did, latching her mouth onto his neck and nursing the wound like a starving child. The taste of it was like ambrosia, heady and sweet…intoxicating. He thrust into her then, their lovemaking frantic and tender at once. She pulled away from his neck as she came with a shout. Giles kissed her, licking the remnants of his blood from her lips.

Plans change, Giles thought as he looked down at his love. She was his everything and he knew despite that the slayer and watcher were never meant to be more than a medium for good. Even the demon inside him knew it.

"I know that look, Giles." Buffy's eyes met his and she offered him a soft smile. "I know…let me just hold you for a while."

The woman was more intuitive that he gave her credit for, she knew what they had to do, that their non-life together was little more than a dream. He held her as she closed her eyes.

Long after she had drifted off to sleep Giles went to the window. He could feel dawn on the horizon, the window was open letting the grey cast from the morning into the room. He turned back to the bed and went to his love, kissing her awake. "It's time, love." She nodded her head and they walked onto his balcony together. With their hands clasped together Buffy and Giles greeted the morning.


End file.
